U.S. WW-Two Veterans of the Philippines Deceased Nov. 2016- Nov. 2016

By: Bob Boyer

 

Veterans’ Day, November 11, 2016 again provides us the opportunity to mark the passing of veterans from Northeastern Wisconsin who served in the Philippines and returned. The following have all died since November of 2015. Their obituaries reveal some notable insights. They are older, of course, most of them in their nineties, with the eldest at 100. They were first introduced to the war at some of the later, climactic battles of the offensive against the Japanese. Several Navy men fought initially at Leyte Gulf in the Philippines and then shipped north toward Japan, to Iwo Jima and Okinawa. Others, Army mainly, fought in the Philippines and stayed, preparing for the anticipated invasion of Japan. Fortunately, the war ended first.

One of these latter was John J. Ignatowski, 92 (Nov. 2, 2015). He was in the Army’s 37th Infantry from 1943 to 1946. The 37th Infantry helped win a major victory at the Battle of Lingayan Gulf (Jan., 1945) in northwestern Luzon, then fought their way south to Manila, where they clashed fiercely in the Battle of Manila (Feb. 4-Mar. 3, 1945). John returned, married, had a family and met regularly for “morning coffee and solving the world’s problems with the Pulaski group” in his old hometown of Pulaski, WI .

Ira Anton Ropson, 88 (Nov. 24, 2015), US Navy, served on an ammunition ship “in Thailand and the Philippines,” toward the end of the war. Back home, he combined a career at Wisconsin Public Service with “working on the farm” and raising six children.

Ralph Enderby, 88 (Dec. 4, 2015), US Navy, served late in the war on a barracks ship. His ship put into San Pedro Bay and Subic Bay for re-fitting, which would have been after the liberation of the Philippines. He was a “dedicated family man” and also an outdoorsman.

Robert Paul Rickert, 93 (Jan 20, 2016), US Navy, was a pharmacist mate. His ship arrived in Manila in July 1945, after hostilities there, a month before the peace treaty. “Bob” was an active traveler, but he also enjoyed “watching basketball with WI cheese and a beer!”

Lavern Devroy, 100 (Feb. 5, 2016), US Navy, is the clear elder of the group. His ship fought in two of the largest naval engagements of the war, Leyte Gulf (October, 1944) and Lingayan Gulf (Jan. 1945). He was, deservedly, present in the harbor for the signing of the peace treaty with Japan. Lavern became a truck driver and member of the Teamsters Union. He was a card player, Church-goer, and enjoyed big home-cooked meals surrounded by family.

Raymond “Ray” Strenski, 89 (Feb. 16, 1016), served as a medic with the US Army “Deadeyes” 96th Infantry. The 96th Infantry took part in the ground invasion at the Battle of Leyte Gulf (Oct. 1944). The 96th later joined in the Battle of Okinawa in April of 1945. Ray and his wife attended the annual reunion of the 96th for twenty-five years.

Loren C. Knaus, 90 (Mar. 11, 2016), US Army, was “stationed in the Philippines for most of [his] military obligations.” He and his wife lived in Milwaukee, where he worked in maintenance for Marquette University for thirty years. They retired in Lena, WI.

Russel L “Russ” Klimek, 91 (Mar. 30, 2016), US Navy, is another veteran of the historic naval Battle of Leyte Gulf (Oct. 1944). He was “very proud” to be a member of the USS Cabot. He was a family man, had a sense of humor, and enjoyed travel and reading.

Robert J. Stephani, 90 (Oct. 7, 2016), US Navy, saw action on a heavy cruiser at Leyte Gulf (Oct. 1944) and then at Iwo Jima (Jan. 1945). His ship, the USS Pensacola was in the thick of two of the most critical and, in terms of lives, most costly land-and-sea battles of the Pacific Theater. He was a lifelong resident of Manitowoc, a ship-building town on Lake Michigan. And he was a “life member of the Disabled American Veterans.”

I hope readers of this column enjoy, as much as I do, these glimpses of the deep connections between Northeastern Wisconsin and the Philippines.

Contact Bob Boyer at Robert.boyer@snc.edu or www.anamericaninmanila.com